Razzaq accuses Babar of influencing Abdullah's ‘aggressive’ batting style

Former Pakistan cricketer, Abdul Razzaq, has pointed the finger at Babar Azam, suggesting that when Abdullah Shafique was at the crease, he played aggressively, but once Babar came to bat, there was a noticeable change in Abdullah’s batting approach.

While speaking on a local TV channel, Razzaq claimed that Abdullah got guidelines from Babar to alter his aggressive style.

"When Abdullah Shafique was playing he was aggressive but when Babar came in to bat, he was stopping his shots, which means he got guidelines to not hit the shot. He tried to stop the ball or play a half-hearted shot. The ball he got out on was not a wicket-taking ball, it seemed like he did not know how to play. This means that whenever the captain is on the crease the strike rate of other players is 78 to 80. It means that he was told to play like that," Razzaq said.

Furthermore, Razzaq expressed concern about the team's overall strategy, emphasizing that a target of 270 against certain teams is insufficient, and the approach should have been to aim for a score around 350. 

Pakistan set 283-run target for Afghanistan in World Cup clash on Monday in Chennai, which was chased by them with eight wickets in hand. 

"This is not cricket. You are scoring 270 against such teams, target should be around 350. This should have been your approach. They say Babar doesn't know captaincy then what are the people in management doing? They should help him out. What are they writing stats," Razzaq added.